Tessera CEO, chairman out amid board changes

LONDON – Packaging intellectual property licensor Tessera Technologies Inc. (San Jose, Calif.) has announced the departure of its CEO Robert Young only days after the company's board of directors declared unanimous support for him.

Richard Hill has been appointed chairman of the board of directors, effective immediately, replacing Robert Boehlke, who will remain on the board until the upcoming annual meeting of stockholders on May 23, 2013. In addition, three directors have been brought on to the board and it will immediately begin a search for a new CEO.

The company had come under pressure to make changes in strategy from minority shareholder Starboard Value LP which had also reportedly made allegations against CEO Robert Young (see Tessera backs CEO as allegations fly).

At that time Tessera said that Starboard Value's formal demands included the removal and
replacement of the CEO, the chairman and the majority of the board seats,
and that Starboard Value was essentially demanding the control a majority owner
would have but while only owning 7 percent of the company's shares. No reference to Starboard Value or any allegations was made in the latest announcement of the changes at the top of Tessera, which also thanked Young and Boehlke for their years of service to the company.

In the statement Tessera said it intends to nominate a slate of six independent directors at the upcoming annual meeting of stockholders, including three new directors and existing directors Richard Hill, David Nagel and Timothy Stultz.

"We continue to strengthen the board, and each of our directors - both current and new - is fully committed to driving stockholder value at the company," said Hill, in a statement. "Bob Boehlke and Bob Young have both made significant contributions in their years of service to the company. We would like to thank them for all that they have done for the company," he also said in the statement.

Sounds like an organization that is a mess! I love the statement " announced the departure of its CEO Robert Young only days after the company's board of directors declared unanimous support for him." I read elsewhere there were allegations of a "xxxxxx relationship with a female employee......"